Improvement in saddle-trees



e. THEoBALD. A

Saddle-Trees.

` 6.151,730. Patented-June- 9,'18174.

PATENT GEoRGE rnEjoBALD, oE SPRINGFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR To HIMSELE AND LUoiAN'L. WELLMAN, or SAME PLAGE.

. IMPROVEMENT IN SADDLE-TREES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 151,730, dated J une 9, 1874; application filed November13, 18,73.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE THEOBALD, of Springfield, Hampden county, State of Massachusetts, have invented an Improved Saddle-Tree, of which the following is a speciiication:

The first part of my invention consists in forming that portion of the frame which bears against the back of the animal to present convex surfaces thereto, and to be depressed from the outside, both from the seat and from the sides of the frame, for the purpose of, by the swell thus made, taking the place of the stuifing, or of enabling a larger part of that usually needed to be dispensed with, while at the same time forming beneath the flap an airchamber, from which, through holes in the frame, ventilation is secured to decrease and to evaporate such moisture as is producedbe neath the saddle, to the further advantage, also, of insuring lightness to the saddle by the absence of padding, and of allowing sockets for the nuts of the ap 'and back-strap bolts to be placed in such position that the ends of the bolts shall be recessed from the bearing-surface of the tree. The second part of my invention relates to the formation of a ridge, upon'which the seat rests, to leave a yShoulder upon each side of the seat, against which the edge of the lap is brought to make, with the top of the frame upon which the seat rests, a flush surface, for the purpose. of dispensing with the necessity of raising the seat by strips of leather or other means, to provide a proper surface for the outer covering,

or of paring the ilap to a beveled edge to join a surface.

In the drawings, Figure I is an end view with partial section. Fig. II is a side view; and Fig. III, a section upon the line x y of Fig. II.

In the drawings, Figs. I and II, it will be seen that the contour of each bearing-surface of the tree is in both cross-sections, w y and a b, curved so as to leave, when the ilap rests against the sides g g, the air-chambers d d,

with which the holes c e c, &c., communicate to give the air access to the inner covering of the tree and the sweat to the interior of the chambers d d, and the swells so formed, being the required shape of the pads, enable the stuffing to be entirely dispensed with, or spread in greatly-diminished quantity of unia form thickness.

By this form of construction, the tops of the flap bolts, instead of with the ends of bolts forminghard lumps Within the stuffing, are received within sockets h h immediately beneath the flap, and raised suiiiciently from the bearing-surface to recess the ends of the I bolts therefrom, with enough space to spare to enable the bolts to be tightened againstthe iiap without dan ger of their beingcxtended against the back of the horse, the side walls of the socket-boxes taking the usually used to hold the top from turning.

To secure the end of the backstrap and recess the bolt for holding it, I employ a saddle or turret, l), Within the swell of the frame, which may either be cast with the rest of the frame, or made separately and let in, as shown in Fig. 1, where the feet, projecting through the frame, are ready to be turned over to securely rivet the terret in place.

This terret D may be made of limited length, as shown, orV extended to the lips m m, to form a continuous guide and support for the back-strap.

Ilitherto the seat has had to be raised from the frame by strips of leather or other material introduced beneath it, to enable the outer covering to be smoothly brought over the edges of the ap, or to accomplish the same object, the edges of the flap pared to join surfaces with the frame. In both cases manipulation is required, and a want of symmetry is the result, inone case from the seat failing to hold down the edges of the strip upon which it rests, and in the other from abulge at the point of junction of theiiap with the tree; but by means of raising the frame to leave the shoulders B B the flap-surface is place of thc spurs n containing air-chambers d d and sockets 7L 7L, to receive the nuts which secure the flaps, as and for the purpose set forth.

his GEORGE X THEOBALD.

mark.

Witnesses:

R. F. HYDE, LUCIAN L. WELLMAN. 

